Countdown to the 2009 Blue October Campaign

lue October is an international month of action to challenge corporate control of water and to protect water as a shared natural resource available to all. This global grassroots campaign recognises the extent of the current global water crisis, and describes itself as a "vibrant international movement" to protect this precious resource as a public good and an inalienable right.

Origins of Blue October

On October 31, 2004, the people of Uruguay voted to amend their constitution to recognize this fundamental right. The Constitution now guarantees that piped water and sanitation be available to all Uruguayans, and it bans for-profit corporations from supplying this public good. Blue October celebrates this historic move by challenging corporate control of water through global action. Groups, individuals and organisations who are part of Blue October agree with the sentiment of the Joint Declaration of the Movements in Defense of Water that came out in Mexico in March 2006. They also are taking some form of water action during the month of October.